Journey through the Decade: A New World
by Beast Out Ghost
Summary: A reimagining of Kamen Rider Decade and much more. Redesigns and recreations of the characters as well! Join into the adventure that might literally take a decade. PS: It does not only include Decade's story, but many other elements a storyplots as well.
1. Chapter 1

"Journey through the Decade"

Chapter 1 - Destroyer and Hero:

The young man could be 19 years old, but in his memory, he had only been in the world for about 4 months or so.

Ijigen Tsukasa suffered from amnesia. However, it was only related to his personal memories. He could speak fluently, in more than one language even! He was knowledgeable in many, many traits, but he could not remember his own identity.

In fact, the only reason how he remembered his supposed name was by finding a note nearby when he had first woken up.

Handwritten, it lay upon a case and an undoubtedly irregular and strange device.

'Your name is Ijigen Tsukasa. Keep on moving. Visit all the Worlds. And never stop.

Choose: will you destroy everything, or connect everything?'

Doing as the note had indicated, Tsukasa didn't waste a second in starting his journey. However, the normal world wasn't as normal as he had expected.

In his travels, in many cities, he came across being that could be considered 'monsters', which attacked humans every single time.

Luckily, he had the power to destroy everything.

* * *

"So this is Gaduba..."

While removing the reddish goggles from over his pure green eyes, a gently breeze ran through his brown simple spiky hair, adjusting his simple mannered clothes: a t-shirt beneath a black vest and simple jeans, in addition to a pinkish-red wristband.

He wasn't very far from the city. Only a couple of miles away was his home for the following days before moving to a different location, in search for a new city.

However, spending every single day walking wasn't an easy task, especially on a low budget.

"Hungry... Somebody... Help..." The poor guy was on the verge of passing out in the middle of the streets. How no one was around to witness or help was a mystery. Well, almost no one.

"Are you okay?"

The voice could've been common for a young girl, sweet and slightly high pitched, but for him, it sounded like an angel's singing. Removing his face splattered on the pavement, he looked up, finding a curious-eyed girl with bright blue irises, hair of an incredibly strong blue hue, almost black, wearing a red tracksuit with multiple yellow stripes drawn over its arms and legs. She carried a small bag over her shoulder, and her hairstyle choice was chest-lengthened ponytail, held together through a red and golden hairpin, similar to some sort of relic.

"Need... Food...!"

"Eh?! A-AHH! O-Of course!" Panicking was an acceptable reaction, since the girl was facing a situation like this for the very first time in her life.

* * *

Slurp! Gulp, gulp, gulp!

"Haaa...! That was delicious!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed it." The girl dragged Tsukasa with ease to the nearest restaurant. A Noodle Bar, to be exact. It was nearly empty, but they sat by the counter, asking for the largest serving one could ask for in there. The flavor was simple, but it contained many, many types of ingredients. In order to help the food travel down his esophagus, fresh water was ordered as well. It was fairly cheap, but not expecting such a situation to come about, it emptied the girl's wallet.

"Im really sorry for making you do this. I haven't eaten a whole lot lately."

"It's fine, really! As long as it makes someone smile, I'll do anything."

A smile and a thumbs up. For some reason, using the two fit her surprisingly well, in Tsukasa's opinion. Then, a hand extended.

"My name is Mongami Ichigou. And yours?"

Staring down at the hand, he looked up and smirked.

"Tsukasa. Ijigen Tsukasa." Taking her hand, they bonded. But letting it go, he followed up with a question. "Did I interrupt you or something?"

"Eh?"

"You seemed to be going somewhere. Off to train?"

"Oh, no, I actually was on my way back from training." Ichigou giggled before continuing. "But now that you mention, maybe I worked out a little bit too much."

"What do you mean?"

"My body is heating up." A hand reach to the collar and she started waving it back and forth, trying to refresh its insides. However, it was a failed attempt. Sighing, Ichigou stood up and started unzipping the top part of her tracksuit, revealing a simple white tank-top underneath. However, closing in to the end, she glanced at Tsukasa and suddenly blushed, starting to zip it back up.

"What's the problem?"

"I..." She looked away, laughing awkwardly before giving up. "I... worked up a little bit too much sweat. I kinda smell."

"Oh, don't worry about it." Tsukasa chuckled, with a little hint of awkwardness, but he seriously didn't mind. "I understand your fear, but if it's any consolation, the scent of the noodles can disguise it."

"I-I see..." Uncertain at first, determined at second. Quickly finishing her original objective, she took off the jacket-like cloth and tied it around her waiting, sitting down by the counter again, proudly. Wearing a blush and a somewhat uncomfortable look, but proud nonetheless.

"...Calm down." Tsukasa's requested seemed to be unheard until Ichigou breathed a sigh. "Besides, what are you so nervous about? It's only natural for humans to stink after a long workout."

"Yeah, but it doesn't stop it from being embarrassing. Especially when you don't like the shower at the gym and you'd rather use the one at home."

"I suppose." Tsukasa chuckled again before drinking more of his water. "What sport were you practicing, by the way?"

"Kickboxing."

"Wow, really?"

"Yup. My aim is to be a worldwide champion! No matter if man or woman, I'll defeat anyone!"

"Haha." Tsukasa put down his glass. "That's a nice dream."

"Well, this isn't really my dream. It's more like my objective." Ichigou clarified. "My dream is to have everyone in the world smiling."

Her words left him speechless, but shortly after, a loud siren could be heard from outside. Ichigou immediately turned.

"The police?! That means...! Tsukasa, I'll be right back, stay here!"

"W-Wait!" Before she could listen to his pleads, Ichigou had already dashed out the door. "Man, she's fast!" Needless to say, his curiosity obligated him to give chase.

Luckily, she didn't stop very far. The warehouse she had entered was surrounded by police cars and officers for some reason Tsukasa couldn't understand, at least until entering the warehouse himself.

Finding an unsupervised entrance, Tsukasa entered, hiding behind a pile of boxes. Peering beside them gave him a clear view of two monster-like entities. He had come across similar beasts. These were themed after animals, each with a strange belt-like ornament. The first was similar to a hermit crab of sorts, while the other possessed characteristics one could associate with condors.

"Species #8, uh? Easy enough." But before Tsukasa could unveil himself towards the monsters, Ichigou rushed in, standing in front of the two. "What the-?!"

"Hey you?"

"?" The two monsters turned, finding the girl with a look of determination and a clenched fist.

"Ready to see my transformation?"

 _"Transformation?!"_ Tsukasa couldn't believe her words.

Placing her hands on the side of each hip generated a silver belt with a large red stone on the center. A hand rose up to the air, open, across her body diagonally, while the other clenched in a fist. She slowly moved the arm across, revealing a cocky yet cheerful smile. "Henshin!" Quickly withdrawing her stretched arm to the same side as the other, she pressed her hand on a single button before spreading them apart again. Glowing brightly white for a second and then in red, her clothes were replaced by a slick red armor on the upper body, with multiple golden markings, while the lower consisted of grieves, black stockings and a black skirt with a golden strip all around it. Her face had not changed, nor had her hair, but a golden crown appeared over her head. "Rider Kuuga! Beware! My power keeps on growing!"

 _"She's... She's a rider too?!"_

His eyes weren't deceiving nor tricking the mind. The girl in front of him had transformed into a Rider. Something he did not know was that apparently there were more of them throughout the world.

"Haa!" Kuuga didn't waste a second to approach the monsters and kick them away, pushing the Condor farther away so she could focus on the Crab, delivering a few powerful punches, but the second monster was quick to recover and charge in as well. Kuuga managed to defend herself from both, holding them off and quickly attacking one at a time. "These are stronger than the usual ones..."

"Would you like some help then?"

"Eh?!" Kuuga quickly turned, finding the boy she had helped shortly before, and surprised by so. "Tsukasa?! This is dangerous! You shouldn't be here!"

"You shouldn't worry about me. Let me pay you back." Quickly drawing his arm, he revealed a strange white device, which he placed in front of his waist, materializing a belt around him from it. He drew a card at the same time as the two monsters charged in and showed it. "Henshin!" Placing the card inside the slot of the buckle, he twisted it, making it sound.

'Kamen Ride: Decade!' Multiple silver shadows appeared around him at the same time as pinkish-red squares flew out of the buckle, hitting the monsters and driving them away. Then, the shadows and squares all fused within his body, revealing his Rider Form: a long black and pinkish trench coat worn over a naked, lightly muscled upper body, connected through a black cross with white rims, along with black, white and pinkish trousers. His eyes showed a slight glimmer of pink, and his hair became much spicier than before, along with two green ornaments on the sides of his head.

"Rider Decade. Get ready to be destroyed."

"A-Another Rider?!" Apparently, Kuuga was just as amazed as Decade was in the discovery of a fellow warrior.

Decade kicked the Condor, pushing it against the fellow fighter while he drew the small silver case of his side, which revealed a hidden handle and suddenly materialized a blade from the opposite side, granting him a weapon to slash the crab with. Kuuga, on the other hand, kept using her fists as weapon of choice. After a small struggle, the monsters rolled over to the opposite side as of the heroes, who approached each other.

"So, Kuuga, was it?"

"Yes. Are you as ready as I am?"

"To kick their asses? Of course."

The two glanced at each, offering a nod and then dashing into the battle once more.


	2. Chapter 2

"Journey through the Decade"

Chapter 2 – Repainted Legends:

Decade's Ride Booker assumed its Sword Mode, slashing the Hermit Crab Gurongi in succession, just as the Condor Gurongi used its swift movements to overpower Kuuga.

"Gh-!" Being pushed back, Kuuga spotted an iron rod lying around on the floor, and quickly reaching for it made her change form. Decade was somewhat surprised to witness the transformation.

The red orb of the belt around Kuuga became blue, just like the armor, which, in addition, became much slicker and light. The armor granted Kuuga less protection, but it was better suited for quick movements and granted more jump power. The pole she picked up turned into the Dragon Rod, a weapon Kuuga could generate from any sort of stick-like object when in the 'Dragon Form'. The Dragon Rod was long, arrow-tipped on both ends, granting her a longer range then when in her 'Mighty Form'.

"She can change forms…?" Decade was only distracted for a second, but that was enough for the Gurongi to attack him. However, Kuuga rushed in and pushed the tribesmen-like monsters away with the use of agile swings of her weapon. "Thanks."

"Let's finish this!" Kuuga reverted to her red 'Mighty Form' and her foot began to flare up. "Ready?"

Decade drew a card from the Ride Booker before answering. "Any time." Sliding the card inside the Decadriver made it sound.

'Final Attack Ride: De-De-De-Decade!'

The Decadriver generated large golden Final Attack Ride card copies, the final card having the image of Decade's attack, all of which moved up diagonally as Decade leapt up.

Kuuga followed suit and the two performed a midair side-kick, Kuuga's foot flaming brightly and Decade travelling through the cards, busting through them and making them disappear in the process.

"Dimensional Kick!"

"Mighty Kick!"

The impact of each kick on the Gurongis defeated them, and the two Riders landed by each other, breathing heavily due to executing their finishers. Standing straight up, they glanced and smiled at each other before reverting back to their human states.

"You're a Rider too?" Kuuga broke the silence.

"Yeah. Rider Decade. I wasn't aware that there were more Riders out there."

"Me neither. Well, you can call me Kuuga from now on. After all, I AM Rider Kuuga, and I'm already used to it. At the police station, everyone treats me as so."

"Really? Well… I suppose you can call me Decade then. To be fair."

"Kuuga, is the situation clear?"

The two riders turned around, finding the origin of the voice: a police woman with dark hair and brown eyes.

"The Gurongi have been defeated, yes."

"Gurongi?" Decade wasn't familiar with the name. However, nor was the woman with him.

She came close, eyeing him with both curiosity and distrust. "Who are you?"

"U-Umm… Call me Decade. I'm a friend of Kuuga's."

"How come I've never seen you around?"

"A very recent one."

Kuuga stepped in. "Don't worry, Miss Sakurako! He helped me defeat the Gurongi."

"Really? He's able to fight them like you?"

"I suppose so. Those creatures are called Gurongi? I've just been calling them #8."

"You've faced them before?"

"Ac couple of times, yeah."

"Well, that's odd." Sakurako leaned back. "There haven't been any reports about the Gurongi outside of this city."

"I just came across the during my travels between cities, so maybe that's why."

"Boy come with us. You might be useful."

"Yay!" Kuuga jumped up, happy for having Decade joining in the investigation. His reaction was, of course, confusion.

"And Kuuga, when you get to the station, please take a shower."

"S-Sakurako!" A bright blush of embarrassment appeared. "Don't say that!"

"Well then, next time don't leave the gym right after working out."

"I hate using the shower rooms of that place!"

Witnessing the argument, Decade only had one thought. _"How did the conversation reach this point?"_

* * *

"Uahh… The water was great." Kuuga seemed a little bit too relaxed, still drying her temple with the towel that rested over her shoulders.

"Kuuga, focus."

"But I already know all this."

"So, let's start."

"D-Don't ignore me…"

"Tsukasa, wasn't it?"

"Decade, if it makes it easier."

"Alright then, Decade." With those words, Sakurako turned the lights off and the projector on. "In this city, monsters called the Gurongi attack. Apparently, in ancient times, they were at war with the Linto."

The slide showed multiple Gurongi. The common trait between all was their tribesmen appearance, mixed in with an animalistic or plant-life trait, such as the head shaped like a spider or arms replaced by bat wings. However, Decade was wondering something else.

"Linto?"

"The Linto are the ancestors of humans."

"Oh..."

"And since the Gurongi came back, they've been wanting to restart the Game."

"Game?"

"They seem to be following the rules of what they call the 'Gegeru', a Game where each Gurongi kills humans in a specific way. As for why, we speculate that it is for one Gurongi to assume leadership of the Tribe as the new leader or king."

"That's weird. I mean, if it's a Game, I suppose they do it to find it more entertaining, but if it's all about killing humans, why bother the fashion?"

"The police is just as confused as you." Kuuga informed, leaning back on her chair.

"All the Gurongi have a tribal appearance, and possess features of a specific animal or plant. They all possess a belt-like ornament around their waist as well."

"Hmm..." Decade. Noticed something in the images. "They're different, but those remind me of Kuuga's belt."

"That's because we found this belt at the same location the Gurongi were first released." The teenager jumped out of the chair and summoned the belt by placing the hands on the sides of her hips. "This is called the Arcle. My powers of Kuuga are provided by the Amadam, this stone right here." Kuuga pointed at the red orb as she spoke.

"I see..."

"From what we know of the scriptures imprinted on the belt, with some speculation, we concluded that the Arcle must be of Linto Origin, and a warrior in the past use it in order to seal the 200 Gurongi."

"200?!"

"I was amazed at first too, but after a while, the number actually goes down quite a bit. I've already beaten 30 since I've started!"

"T-There's still around 170 left..."

"Details, Decade. Details."

"As I was saying..." The woman cleared her throat. "Due to difficulties, the police decided to ask Kuuga to join in as a special officer, since she is the most suited for this kind of battles." Passing a few slides, 5 images of Kuuga were shown, all in a different form though. "The first one here, the white form, is what we call 'Growing Form', a basic and weak form Kuuga assumed at the beginning, which was quickly replaced by her now default state, the 'Mighty Form'. The third one is called the 'Dragon Form', which she assumes when generating a staff pole through any sort of stick-like object. She then gained access to the 'Pegasus Form', which she turns into when generating a special bow-gun through a gun-like object. The last one so far is the 'Titan Form', equipped with a sword created through any stick-like object again."

"...Well, that's all fine and good, but why should I know all this?"

"You should know the powers of your new partner."

Sakurako's word so made Decade blink twice. "Eh?"

"...I'll say it in a way you might understand: you're hired."

"We're going to work together!" Kuuga hugged her now new partner, who was forced to join in the squad for the looks of it.

"..." Decade wanted to object. The note told him to keep on moving, so he felt uncomfortable to stay on a place for too long, but he was apparently now bound by a profession. However, before he could structure the words and sentences necessary, a policeman barged into the room.

"Chief Sakurako! Gurongis are attacking the surrounding area of the city!"

"Wait, they're not attacking WITHIN the city?" Kuuga was certainly surprised by the added information.

"They're behavior is slightly unnatural as well."

"How so?" Decade inquired, jumping off his seat.

"Instead of immediately killing their victims, they are dragging them to specific locations."

"That might be just part of their Game. Send squads to every location except the nearest one. Kuuga, Decade, come with me."

"Can you give me a lift?"

"Kuuga will."

"I will? Wait, does that mean...?!"

"Yes. The transformations for TryChaser2000 have finished."

"Alright!" Kuuga jumped in happiness, leaving Decade slightly confused. Especially due to not recognizing some of the names spoken.

* * *

"S-Slow down a bit!"

"I'm trying!"

Decade was offered a ride from Kuuga after she received her new motorcycle, the TryBeat2000, an upgraded model of the one that became dashed from a previous encounter with an unusually strong Gurongi.

The speed was much higher, and excitement made her accelerate much more than she had intended. However, thanks to that, they reached the location just in time before a group of three Gurongi could do god knows what to their kidnapped victim.

"Help!"

In the attempt to escape, the woman was pushed away by the Moth Gurongi, suddenly caught by the Tortoise and Tiger ones.

"Henshin!" On the very last stretch, Kuuga and Decade assumed their Rider forms, jumping off the back that collided against the Moth Gurongi, kicking the other two away from the woman.

"Are you ok?" Kuuga inquired, as Decade fended off the Gurongi.

"Y-Yes..."

"Alright. Run! The Police is on its way!" She warned while entering the brawl herself. With the woman having fled, the two Riders didn't have much to worry now.

"Kuuga, catch!" After drawing a card, he hurled the Rider Booker in its gun form, which she caught with ease. The Moth Gurongi flew up, making itself a harder target, while the Tortoise and Tiger rushed in.

'Attack Ride: Illusion!' Decade used the card, allowing him to multiply into a total of three. In the meantime, Kuuga took a proper hold of the gun.

"Pegasus Form!" Upon shouting the words, her body began to glow green, her upper arm becoming much slicker as a result, though not as much as her blue form. A single, triangular, sharp shoulder pad appeared over her left shoulder, and the Rider Booker transformed into the Pegasus Bowgun. "I hate when this happens... C'mon Kuuga, hold it in!" Her senses heightened to the point of becoming 1000 times more powerful, which put on an amazing strain on her nervous system. Due to such, she could only endure the form for 50 full seconds.

However, her accuracy was deadly. "Blast Pegasus!" Pressing the trigger after aiming, a powerful arrow surrounded by a cyclone of green winds was fired, piercing through the Moth Gurongi and making it explode. "Decade!" She hurled the gun back at one of the Decade, the one who wasn't fighting with the remaining pair of Gurongi.

He moved the handle of the Rider Booker and turned it into its Sword Mode. Passing his hand through the blade, Decade charged in, attacking the Tiger Gurongi, while Kuuga kicked the Tortoise and quickly grabbed a nearby branch.

"Titan Form!" A sharp, double-edged sword was created from it, and Kuuga's armor changed once more. This time, it became much larger, mainly silver with large purple trims. Her speed was sacrificed for a stronger physique, with strength and resistance increased.

However, Decade noticed something about the Gurongi. While struggling with the Tiger, the monster muttered words of a foreign language. But despite not being earthly, Decade could comprehend it perfectly.

"The ritual will be completed!"

And he could speak it too. "Ritual?"

"What?! A human that knows the Gurongi Language?!"

Decade pushed the Gurongi up against a while, stopping him from moving. "Tell me what this ritual is! Do it and I'll let you go!"

"Grrr…" Seeing his lie in danger, the monster sought a way out. "Fine. This is a new addition to the Gegeru. If we make five women bleed, in specific places of nature, a Gurongi just as powerful as our Leader will awake from his slumber!"

"I see… Thanks." Decade slashed the Gurongi, spinning away and quickly inserting a card in the Decadriver.

'Attack Ride: Slash!'

"Liar!"

"Never said I wouldn't do something like this!" The blade of Decade's weapon began to glow brightly pink and he waved it downwards, releasing an air-cutting wave at the monster, destroying it completely.

He rushed back to where Kuuga fought valiantly with the remaining Gurongi, slashing it multiple times in a row. "Calamity…" Before Kuuga could finish her attack, as she retracted her arm, the Tortoise delivered a powerful blow against her stomach, which made her cringe, but not to lose focus. "…Titan!" she thrusted her sword into the monster's stomach and then retracted it with a twist, defeating it within an explosion of energy. Kuuga reverted to her Mighty Form and walked up to Decade.

"Kuuga, be careful!"

"Eh? With what?"

"The Gurongi are attempting to revive a powerful one."

"What?! Wait, how do you…?"

"I can understand them for some reason."

"WHAT?!"

"Look, I know this sounds bad, but I'll explain it later. What's important is to make sure that no woman bleeds… in… here…"

"Hm? Is something wrong?" Decade's words trailed off shortly before a metallic taste came to Kuuga's mouth. Placing a finger over the corner of her lips and feeling something wet sticking to it. Seeing the red color, Kuuga's eyes widened. "Uh-oh…"

"Indeed!" Decade and Kuuga ran towards the TryBeat2000, just as the police car of Sakurako arrived.

"What's the matter?"

"Miss Sakurako, we have to get back to the city as soon as we can!"

"What happened?"

"The Gurongi are reviving a stronger higher-up! We have to be quick!"

"How do you know that?"

Kuuga glanced at Decade, who suddenly looked away due to the question. However, the sound of the hammer of a gun echoed right behind Sakuraku.

Everyone froze up. Decade glanced at the man standing behind Sakurako. He appeared to be slightly older than the Riders, around 24 years of age, and wore a trench coat and fisherman hat, along with black rimmed glasses over dark brown eyes.

"Who…?"

"I can't let you do that, Decade."

"What the…?!"

The man opened his free palm and a golden orb appeared inside it. "A little present for you to remember me by." He thrust his arm and the orb entered the Amadam in Kuuga's Arcle, making the orb shine intensely yellow and then turning black. Kuuga began to scream as electricity began to surge around her body. Golden rims appeared on her armor, as the red became black, just like the purity of her clear blue eyes became tinged with darkness.


	3. Chapter 3

"Journey through the Decade"

Chapter 3 – Rider Battle:

"Kuuga!"

Decade and Sakurako both feared the worse. Kuuga appeared to be in pain as she stepped away, holding her head with both hands in apparent pain, as the Amadam kept fluctuating back and forth between golden yellow and pitch black.

"What did you do to her!?" Decade drew the Rider Booker in its Gun Mode, but the man's glance made him stop.

"Move and the policewoman here will get a bullet inside her skull."

"Grrr…"

"W-What did you do to Kuuga?" Sakurako wondered, turning her eyes to the side.

"Oh, I just gave her a little present."

"Gyaaahhhhh!" The electricity disappeared and Kuuga's face lost all emotion. She seemed like a totally different person with her constant smirk.

"Watch out, Decade. She's quite powerful right now."

"Cut the sarcasm!" As Kuuga delivered a punch, Decade crossed his arms in front of his body in order to defend the attack, but he felt like the bones that received the impact were about to break. The strength of the punch managed to hurl him against the nearby wall. "O-Ouch…"

"Kuuga, stop it!" Sakurako demanded, making the pitch-black eyed Rider turn to her. "This isn't you! Didn't you want to make everybody smile!? Fight to protect their smiles!? Then do what you told me you would do when you told me to watch you transform!"

Kuuga seemed to be indifferent to the small speech, and started approaching the woman slowly.

"Oh crap!" Decade dashed, wielding his sword and slashing Kuuga upon reaching her, but with little effect. She seemed indifferent to the attack, and simply turned her head to him. "Oh… Crap…" He stepped away, knowing that he couldn't match Kuuga's sheer strength. But maybe she could lure him away from the setting.

'Attack Ride: Blast!' Decade jumped back and fired a bullet from his weapon, which multiplied into more projectiles that travelled in what appeared to be random patterns, but they all ended up hitting the out of control fighter, with little effect. However, it was enough to draw her away from Sakurako and the mysterious man.

After a few minutes alone, Sakurako put her plan into motion. She quickly turned so the gun wouldn't be aimed at her and took the man's arm, taking the weapon off his hand and aiming it at him.

"Don't move."

"Hey, hey, calm down…" The man put his hands up. "There's no need to be violent."

"You're under arrest."

"I'm pretty sure that making a Rider go out of control is not a law breaker."

"Attempting to play smart?!"

"Not really. But before you do anything else, let me tell you that, as we talk, a powerful Gurongi is attacking the city. I think you should be on your way to defend the city. As that is part of your job."

The man was clearly calm, with little to worry despite having a gun aimed at him, while Sakurako began feeling nervous and anxious.

"What exactly is stopping me from arresting you?"

"Oh, that's a question easy to answer. You see, for you to arrest someone, you need to be able to handcuff them." With a snap of his fingers, the man suddenly disappeared into thin air.

"What the-?!" Sakurako was confused, but there wasn't time to waste. She entered the car and made her way back to the city.

* * *

Decade managed to lure Kuuga to a secluded areawhere no one would approach. Fitting for what would be a long battle.

'Attack Ride: Slash!'

Decade swung his sword, sending an air cutting wave in her direction, but a simply thrust of her palm destroyed it.

"I'm running out of ideas here!"

'Attack Ride: Illusion!' After multiplying, two copies of Decade charged in, but a punch and a kick were enough to destroy them into nothingness.

"Oh crap, oh crap, what do I do…?" All of his cards had been useless so far, and approaching Kuuga would be a big no-no. But he remembered the words Sakurako spoke.

 _Didn't you want to make everybody smile!? Fight to protect their smiles!?_

"…Kuug- No… Ichigou!" Putting on an honest smile, he stopped running. "You want to protect everyone's smiles, don't you? Then… rise beyond that power. Use it to protect everyone."

Kuuga stopped moving and her emotionless face suddenly surged with pain. Holding her head between her hands, the electricity reappeared. Decade hoped for the best and feared for the worst. Shortly after, her hand raised up and made a gesture.

A thumbs up.

The eyes were no longer tinged in darkness. Breathing heavily, a smirk formed.

"Kuuga!"

"Yup. I might still have a little screw loose though…" she admitted, giggling awkwardly as Decade ran up to her. "Don't worry about it. Well, let's move. The city is in danger after all."

"Alright! And I'll put this power to good use."

"Not so fast…" The two turned, finding the man from before behind them.

"You!"

"What did you do with Chief Sakurako?!"

"Oh don't worry about her. You should worry about yourselves first." Snapping his fingers, the man conjured up glass-like walls, forming a cube around the two Riders. Before they could question it so, the walls changed color, giving off the appearance that they were in a different location. An empty dimension.

"Where the heck are we?"

Before Kuuga could answer with an 'I don't know', two portals opened up, each from the opposite side. Decade and Kuuga pressed their backs against each other in a battle stance, readying themselves for the possible danger.

"Hey, bro, it seems we've scored!"

"You're right, sis. This might be fun."

In Decade's sight was a girl, embellished in green grasshopper-like armor over her black clothes, light brown hair with green bangs and eyes that showed both shades of red and green somehow. On her lower legs were an ornament similar to grasshopper legs.

Kuuga, however, found a man, probably the same age as them and the other girl. His armor was bulkier on the upper half of the body, compared to his partner at least, and grayish-silver instead of green. His hair was spiky, dark-brown, almost black, with gray tips, and his eyes that mixed shades of red and light gray. On his forearms were the same ornament present in the girl's legs.

"Who are you?!"

"Well, call me Rider KickHopper. As for my brother, he goes by Rider PunchHopper."

"We've been told you two would be a challenge. So? Ready?"

PunchHopper posed as a boxer about to start a match, while KickHopper started lightly jumping, also preparing her fists, though not as tightly.

"We have to hurry…" Kuuga muttered, annoyed by how she couldn't go back to the city and see how bad the situation could get.

"We don't really have a choice. We don't even know where we are. Might as well defend ourselves!" Decade and Kuuga ran in opposite directions towards KickHopper and PunchHopper respectively.

Attempting to deliver a punch, Decade jumped at KickHopper, but with a spinning jump, she not only threw the fist out of trajectory with a foot and kicked the side of his face with the other. Swift and nimble, KickHopper relied on kicks to fend off Decade's attacks. Decade attempted to deliver a barrage of punches, but KickHopper took a hold of both his arms and kicked his chest before using it as a platform to jump and flip, thus kicking him a second time in a row, quickly delivering a roundhouse kick and a another push kick against the chest, pushing him away.

Kuuga, in the meantime, entered a fist fight with the boxer-like fighter. Their fists clashed together rarely, but when they did, Kuuga would gain the advantage. Her physical strength was over 10 times the total strength PunchHopper could input in his punches, but he was faster when it came to combat speed, meaning he could dodge and counter much faster than her. After some prolonged fight, performing multiple uppercuts and jabs, he managed to tire her down, enough to push her back with a kick, at the same time as Decade was pushed back by a palm thrust of KickHopper.

"Uff!"

"They're strong…"

"I know…" Decade answered, clearing the sweat on his forehead.

"Do you want to swap?"

"Fine by me."

Decade rolled over Kuuga's back as she bent over, giving him an opportunity to strike PunchHopper with a back kick while Kuuga roundhouse kicked KickHopper, though the latter dodged.

"Wow, not bad. You're quite strong, aren't you, missy?" KickHopper's tone of voice was annoying, appeared to be mocking Kuuga somehow.

"She is, sis! Watch out for her kicks!"

"Thanks bro!"

"You should be focusing!" Decade drew his Rider Booker Sword Mode and attempted to slash PunchHopper, but performing counters was his specialty. Leaning to the side, he escaped the slash, and quickly delivered an uppercut to Decade's chin. Spitting blood to the side, Decade tried to attack with different means.

'Attack Ride: Slash!' The air wave was launched at the Rider, but PunchHopper easily blocked it with a powerful stroke.

On the other side, KickHopper fended off Kuuga with the use of hops and leaps followed by stomps, something Kuuga couldn't defend from due to the unfamiliarity with the sort of the attack she was facing.

"Hey, sis, this is starting to get boring. How about we finish this?"

"Why not?"

The two placed a hand over their respective grasshopper-like belt buckles, pushing up the legs of the device.

'Rider Jump!'

'Rider Jump!'

Green and orange energy surged down the legs of KickHopper and PunchHopper simultaneously, allowing them to jump higher than Decade and Kuuga ever could.

"I'll take Kick!" Decade informed, drawing a card in the process.

"Alright!"

'Final Attack Ride: De-De-De-Decade!'

The holograms of cards appeared right above Decade, aiming for KickHopper, while Kuuga bent her knees and having electricity surge down her legs. Dcade jumped into the cards and positioned himself for his Dimensional Kick attack upwards, while Kuuga jumped, pulling back a clenched fist with energy concentrated around it.

As gravity began pulling the Hopper siblings back down, they pushed the legs of the devices once again, this time making energy run up to PunchHopper's arms and down KickHopper's legs.

'Rider Punch!'

'Rider Kick!'

As they descended, targets were locked on. Decade crashed into KickHopper and Kuuga clashed with PunchHopper, the confrontation releasing energy in every direction. The ornaments of the Hoppers began to contract and extend, powering up the the attacks, but the result was unexpected.

* * *

"Whaa!" KickHopper and PunchHopper fell in what appeared to be a dark alley, reverting back into their human forms. They both appeared to be wearing leathery clothes, the main difference being KickHopper's shorts to PunchHopper's pants and that the man had his sleeves rolled up.

"The hell? We returned to our city?"

"Seems so, bro." The two stood up, cleaning off the dust from their clothes. "The man did say we would be in a 'different dimension' for the battle.

"He was weird, but man, that battle was awesome!"

"I agree. I haven't felt like that for quite some time now." KickHopper admitted, as she placed her hands behind her head. "C'mon, let's go home."

"Alright." Placing the hands inside his pockets, the man followed his sister down the alleyway on the way back home, but the two stopped when a brief air stream passed through them both, along with a blur on the corner of their eyes. They quickly turned around to see if they could still spot it, but with no effect. "Was that…?"

"Yeah… Geez. How long has she been running for?"

"It's been a couple of weeks already, I believe."

"And she's been constantly on Clock Up? That can't be good for her health."

"But… why didn't she attack us or any other enemy in the meantime?" PunchHopper wondered, somewhat confused. "If she has always been under the effects of Clock Up these past weeks, then why hasn't she made some sort of surprise attack?"

"I have no idea. But let her be. It's none of our business." KickHopper affirmed, going back to her walk-cycle. "There's just something I'm wondering…"

"And that is…?"

"…What is she running from?"

* * *

"Oww…. My head…" Decade woke up in his human form, holding up his head in pain. Looking around, he found himself in the same place as where he and Kuuga first battled, right in front of the TryBeat2000. Next to him was the unconscious girl. "Kuuga? Kuuga, wake up!"

"Ehhh…? Where are we…?"

"Back where we left off." Decade stood up, helping the girl too. "Let's go. The city is in danger."

"Wait… Chief Sakurako!" Kuuga dashed, worried for her surperior.


End file.
